Indonesia-based ride-hailing giant Gojek is letting go around 9 percent of its workforce as the company weathers the coronavirus pandemic, which has hit its business hard, the media reported.
Around 430 Gojek employees are set to lose their job, most of them in Indonesia.
Reportedly, Gojek’s GoLife and GoFood festival divisions will the ones severely impacted.
These newer units will shut their doors in July as Gojek refocuses its efforts on its core offerings of digital payments, food delivery, and transportation.
In a statement, Gojek said, “The measures will provide the company with resources to focus on the business areas where it has the most impact… but also the services that have shown promise as a result of the pandemic, such as logistics, which has grown by 80 percent, or groceries, which has more than doubled.”
These businesses are dependent on close human interaction and have seen a significant downturn over the past few months as the Covid-19 pandemic has affected consumer habits.”
Recently, rival Grab also announced that it will let go around 5 percent of its current workforce, which is around 360 employees, the media reported.
Grab chief executive officer Anthony Tan recently made the announcement to his employees.
With regard to the job cut, a spokesperson from Grab told TechCrunch that the company does not face any capitalisation issues. The layoffs are a part of a broader plan for Grab to become a leaner and more efficient organisation.
The spokesperson also said that Grab remains laser-focused on adapting its core businesses of transport, deliveries, payments, and financial services to address the challenges and opportunities of the new normal.